Summer 2021
Connecting people to the land for over 70 years
From the Director’s Desk
by Rob TerryEvery Tuesday morning at eight a.m., Merck’s staff members gather in the Sap House for a weekly check-in—pretty standard stuff. We share our goals for the week, identify ways we can support one another, review incidents and hazards, and ensure we’re set up to make progress on collaborative projects. While we’re together, we also take time to pause, step back from process and planning, to purposefully express our gratitude for the support we’ve received from one another, the joyful interactions we’ve had with visitors, the natural world in which we work, etc.
In the spirit of our weekly gratefuls, I’d like to take a moment to express my gratitude for the incredible work that so many in Vermont have done to position our little state as a global leader in COVID-19 vaccinations. Thanks to this Herculean effort, 82.1% of Vermont’s residents have received at least one vaccination (compared to 23.4% worldwide), while 65.6% are fully vaccinated. Our weekly meetings in the Sap House are once again in person, a great relief for a staff that has purposefully chosen place-based work. On sunny days, the farm and trails are teeming with visitors from around the region, who now have unrestricted access to the Green Mountain State. Joyful laughter from young participants in our summer camp programs is echoing across our forests and fields. Campfires are crackling outside of cabins and lean-tos as the sun sets across the southern Adirondacks. Everything is back to normal.
Of course, a quick scan through any news feed reveals that normal isn’t quite what it used to be. Have we re-localized? Has the American workforce permanently shifted? Will all of the bikes, kayaks, skis, paddleboards, camping gear, etc., purchased during the pandemic be relegated to the garage? Are we on the verge of a 1920s style social revival? As a global community, can we close the growing gap in vaccinations between rich and poor countries? Unanswered questions, both large and small, remain. Regardless of where the answers to these questions lead us, there remain enduring truths. We are of this planet, dependent on its systems and connected to its rhythms. Our connection to the natural world provides immense benefits to both physical and mental health. We are at our best when we work to serve those around us who find themselves in need. We will continue to focus on these simple truths here at Merck Forest & Farmland Center. We do not know what the future will bring. We do, however, know that wherever this post-pandemic path leads us, our collective future will be brighter when we build a deep connection to the land and foster a culture of respect and care for this amazing planet we call home.
PHOTO CREDITS:
front cover Cara Davenport
p. 2 Max Miley
p. 3 Anna Terry
p. 4 Daniel Kaufman, Bella Reed
p. 5 Tyler Hughes, Max Miley
p. 4-5 Max Miley
p. 6 Cara Davenport, Anna Terry, NG:D Archive
p. 7 Tyler Hughes
p. 8-9 Anna Terry
p. 10 MFFC archive
p. 14 Cara Davenport
p. 17 Tyler Hughes
p. 19 Chris Hubbard
p. 23 MFFC archive
back cover Tyler Hughes
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Merrill Bent
Dinah Buechner-Vicher
Kat Deely, Secretary
Jim Hand
Greg Hopper, Treasurer
Mark Lourie
San Schneski, Vice President
John Stasny
Sue Van Hook, President
Brian Vargo
ADVISORS
Jill Perry Balzano
Judy Buechner
Donald Campbell
Jean Ceglowski
Austin Chinn
Jock Irons
Jon Matthewson
Bob McCafferty
STAFF
Stephanie Breed Visitor Center Coordinator
Cara Davenport
Education Manager
Tim Duclos
Conservation Manager
Dylan Durkee
Farm Manager
Chris Ferris-Hubbard
Education Director
Kathryn Lawrence
Asst. Executive Director
Marybeth Leu
Communications Coordinator
Liz Ruffa
Advancement Director
Rob Terry Executive Director
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Welcome from new Board President Sue Van Hook
It is summer on the mountain and the ripeness of the season is apparent everywhere you look - new lambs and chicks, vegetables galore, fresh hay in the barn, a new crop of interns and new members to MFFC’s Board of Trustees. A sincere thanks to the board members who have served for many years guiding the organization to this moment in time. And welcome new trustees. We have exciting opportunities ahead to align the organization with a changing world.
I am honored to become the new president of the Board of Trustees, appreciating the full circle I’ve traveled from land conservation in Maine with Frank Hatch (father) to learning from George Hatch (son and immediate past president). The connections from this ridge top landscape are as vast as the underground fungal mycelia I study. We welcome new members to connect to our sustainably focused working farm and forest landscape. We invite old members to stay connected and involved. And we seek new ways to make the MFFC experience inclusive and accessible to everyone. Time spent in nature is essential for our well-being. We make that easy at MFFC. So why not introduce a friend to Merck Forest this summer, the way Frank Hatch introduced me to this remarkable place thirty-two years ago?
Sue Van Hook President
Trustee Transitions
We thank these outgoing Trustees for their stellar service and enduring commitment to growth and excellence at Merck Forest & Farmland Center
Keld Alstrup 2012-2021
served two terms as Treasurer
Jeromy Gardner 2010 - 2021
chaired Nominating Committee
George Hatch 2012 - 2021
served two terms as President
Ann Jackson 2014-2021
served two terms as Vice President
Slate of Officers; July 2021
Sue Van Hook, President
Sam Schneski, Vice President
Kat Deely, Secretary
Greg Hopper, Treasurer
Welcome New Trustees!
Merrill Bent
Greg Hopper
John Stasny
2021 Trustees July 2021
Merrill Bent
Dinah Buechner-Vischer
Kat Deely
Jim Hand
Greg Hopper
Mark Lourie
Sam Schneski
John Stasny
Sue Van Hook
Brian Vargo
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New Faces at Merck Forest
My name is Daniel Kaufman, and I have been working as an intern on the farm since mid-May 2021. You are most likely to find me fixing fences, feeding the animals, haying, mowing, just about anything in and around the farm. I’m working on everyday chores on the farm and thinking about long-term land management goals as we begin formulating the new 10-year farm management plan. An exciting project we are working on is expansive soil and forage testing to help create a baseline to judge future projects and determine their feasibility. We also are beginning multi-species grazing and an evaluation of the carbon sequestration potential of different grasses and legumes. My hands and brain are full; there is so much to learn and do. Soil is frustratingly complicated. If anyone wants to learn more about the work going on on the farm, please contact me.
A bit about me, I’m a recent graduate of New York University hailing from San Juan, Puerto Rico, but I also have family in Weston, Vermont, and know the area well. I studied a medley of Computer Science, Political Science and Philosophy at NYU. I’m passionate about food, technology, and sustainability and hope to find some way to accommodate all my interests after my lovely summer at Merck comes to an end.
My name is Bella Reed, and I am a camp counselor for Merck’s plethora of summer camps. I’m from Saratoga Springs, New York, and I am a rising junior at Vassar College, where I am studying a medley of economics and education. I feel so lucky and grateful to work with Cara and Chris in opening young minds (or just making a fun day)! We’ve been up to some super cool things so far this summer (i.e. a brand-new, studentconstructed connector between the Burke and Discovery Trails, some very radical pond exploration, and a ton of learning for everyone involved — if the kids have been able to learn even a fraction of what I have, I would call it an overwhelming success), and there’s so much more to come. Being able to explore Merck, learn about things traditionally outside of my wheelhouse (from both the kids and everyone else at Merck) AND hang out with kiddos all day has been the highlight of my summer, and I hope to be able to further my experience in field education to potentially develop a career that incorporates it in some form! Every day at camp is eye-opening and outstanding in some super little ways, and in some genuinely life changing ones, and I’m so excited for the rest of the season.
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My name is Tyler Hughes and I hail from a town around 30 minutes north of Boston, Massachusetts! I am 22 years old and will turn 23 at the end of the year. I recently graduated from the University of Vermont up in Burlington, Vermont. During my time at university, I studied forestry as well as geospatial technologies. Being outdoors, especially in the forests, is one of my favorite places to be. As part of my capstone projects at UVM, I worked with Merck Forest to help begin to develop interpretive material to educate visitors about Vermont’s landscape. Following this, I was hired as a recreation technician and you might see me working all around the property doing anything from clearing trails, fixing cabins, or performing general maintenance wherever it may be needed. Hopefully, I will have time on machines like the tractors, excavators, bulldozers and dump trucks and learn the ins and outs of operating these machines. These hours and skills are crucial for furthering my career because they can be very difficult to gain.
To date, my proudest achievement is graduating from college in four years and being able to have a job coming out of school. This summer, the main focus of my projects include improving and constructing drainage and water control structures around the properties to ensure the longevity of the trail network at Merck. One thing that I am particularly excited for besides driving all the cool equipment at Merck, is the possibility to assist Tim Duclos in conducting his forest inventory for Merck Forest!
My name is Max Miley, and I’m the Conservation Intern here at Merck Forest this summer under the direction of Tim Duclos, our Conservation Manager. I grew up in Bloomfield, Michigan (about 45 minutes from Detroit), and I graduated from the University of Michigan with a major in Environmental Sciences and a minor in Ecology, Evolution, and Biodiversity in April of 2020. My position at Merck focuses on three major projects: forest bird monitoring, Merck’s Annual BioBlitz, and conducting forest inventories to inform Merck’s next 10-Year Forest Management Plan. Check out the articles in this Ridgeline issue about bird monitoring, and the BioBlitz to learn more about those projects! Otherwise, I spend my time contributing to Merck Forest’s iNaturalist Biodiversity Project by exploring the property and identifying wildlife, and I’ll be working on smaller projects to protect and restore Merck’s beautiful natural resources wherever I can. After my time at Merck this summer, I’m returning to Ann Arbor, Michigan, where I work as a Conservationist for the city’s Natural Area Preservation Department. I hope to engage my new skills from Merck Forest and bring a bit of Vermont charm back to Michigan!
Full-time
Tyler Hughes - Recreation Support Technician
Daniel Kaufman - SCA Intern (farm)
Max Miley - SCA Intern (forest)
Isabella Reed - Camp counselor
Part-time
Shterna Gordon - BBA Intern
Juliette Mestel - NG:D Intern
Ali Millette - Camp counselor
Shterna, Juliette and Ali attend Burr and Burton Academy in Manchester, The Hewitt School in NYC and Arlington Memorial High school respectively and are assisting us with land management, BioBlitz promotion, food systems distribution and messaging and summer camp. We really appreciate their help!
2021 Seasonal Staff & Interns5
Getting Outside with Kids!
by Chris HubbardOur work with the Mettawee Community School (MCS) and Mrs. Lea’s and Mrs. Porrier’s 6th grade classes wrapped up this May as we celebrated with students during their annual Spring Carnival field day. As groups of students created rock cairns, went on scavenger hunts, explored hula hoopsized ecosystems, and met with Vermont Fish and Wildlife staff members on the school grounds, other groups joined Cara and myself as we hiked with students out onto the adjoining Merck Forest land, where they honed their observation skills and experienced the quiet of the natural world through sitspots.
The 6th graders’ work culminated with the creation of a kiosk of what they learned, including descriptions of the various ecosystems on the Merck property, information on the various components found in those ecosystems, and how to steward the land. We’re looking forward to our continued work with MCS when the new school year rolls around in the fall.
With school coming to a close and summer finally arriving, our camps are in full swing! After months of hopeful planning, we now have kids on the landscape, meeting our chickens, scooping in the pond, and taking hikes. Our first Trail Crew campers, donning yellow hard hats and gloves, have been clearing trails and laying out a connector trail between the Discovery and Burke Trails as they learn the principles of Leave No Trace and meet with Vermont Youth Conservation Crew members. Laughter can be heard in the woods as our young campers experience the joy of being outside with friends, old and new while learning new skills.
Projects up on the Mountain
by Dylan DurkeeThis summer, there has been a lot of work happening up at the farm as well as on the trails, cabins and at the new Welcome Kiosk. We started the early part of the summer with a firewood processor on property, cutting firewood for 2022’s cabin rentals, the Visitor Center (which MFFC heats with wood) and to cover powering our next maple sugaring season. After finishing the firewood project, I started laying down stone under the new Welcome Kiosk and brought in material to landscape up around the building.
I am also working on designing a new entrance sign at the road on Route 315 and looking forward to coming up with a plan that lets folks know about what is happening up at Merck Forest when we have programs and events.
Tyler and Daniel were working on trails, specifically the Mount Antone trail. They used 6” drainage pipe to help with the sitting water that pools after a big rain. I am very happy to see how it is working already. Daniel has also been improving intensive grazing protocols on the farm and giving our ewes and Jonny nice cud to chew on. We have successfully put in our 1st cut hay into the Harwood Barn. These are just a few of the things that have been happening up on the mountain over the first part of the summer.
Northshire Grown: Direct
by Liz Ruffa
Northshire Grown: Direct has a new summer home! This direct-to-consumer local food purchasing platform has started working out of the Marble House Project’s amazing Event Barn off the Dorset West Road. MFFC is so pleased to be partnering with MHP, which is a very busy and productive creative residency program offering several three week residency sessions each summer and fall to writers, poets and visual, performing and culinary artists. NG:D’s customer base has continued to help farmers and food producers remain whole. As Covid-19 ebbs and our region returns to normal, please continue to support your local farmers! More information can be found at www.northshiregrown.com.
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Trail and Road Work
by Tyler Hughes
This summer at Merck Forest there are several trail-building projects in the works. The section of Antone Road that leads to Clark Cabin has major drainage issues. Because the trail is both flat and close to bedrock, water tends to sit and flood the trail which leads to both muddy conditions and long-term erosion of the trail. Due to this, perforated drainage pipe that will be covered with stone and soil is being installed. These structures will aid in diverting water off and away from the trail’s surface.
There are several other places like this on the trails around Merck Forest that will require attention at some point this summer. The two major problem spaces include some spots on Meyer and Gallop Roads. There, water has eroded the trail and some water diversion structures have failed and must be replaced.
Vermont Youth Conservation Corps Sawyers Deployed at MFFC
by Tim Duclos, MSc.r
A crew of four novice sawyers (a person who saws timber for a living) from the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC) have been hard at work this past month completing a series of forest management prescriptions along the Discovery and Wildlife trails. The driving force behind this work is a 2019 grant secured from the High Meadows Funds that is sparking an emerging effort towards engaging regional landowners in conservation planning; deploying the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps and implementing demonstrative forest management in close proximity to the visitor center meets several objectives for this project. By engaging VYCC crew in the work, young sawyers are learning about the process of harvesting trees, as well as Bird Friendly Forestry considerations in collaboration with Audubon Vermont; along the way, MFFC is completing forest management that will carry forth in providing a compelling visual demonstration of timber stand improvement work. As MFFC continues toward engaging with regional landowners within the 42,000acre forested area in which Merck Forest resides, this effort aims to inspire.
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The VYCC saw crew take a break from work to receive a primer on bird friendly forestry considerations from Audubon Vermont’s Senior Conservation Biologist Steve Hagenbuch. Photo Credit: Tim Duclos
Disorderly Conduct
By Rob TerryrWe have nearly endless idioms to express simplicity: easy as pie, like shooting fish in a barrel, no sweat, like stealing candy from a baby. The list goes on. However, it does not contain many references to land management: “easy as regenerative agriculture,” “simple as a log job,” or “like dropping trees in the forest” are never used to imply ease. There is good reason for this. Land management is a complicated endeavor. Ecosystems are so complex as to appear chaotic, even to the highly trained eye, and we are not creatures of chaos. Instead, we are soldiers in the army of order—we plant the flag of symmetry, straight line, balance, and pattern to mark our victories. We dissolve continuums into binaries so that we may categorize outcomes into “right” or “wrong.”
Take, for example, a classic right-versus-right dilemma popular in undergraduate and graduate ethics courses that pits the logger against the spotted owl. In the distilled version, used to spark conversations about making difficult decisions, the continued health and well-being of the owl is at odds with the economic prosperity of the logger. In order for the logger to feed his family, he must cut the owl’s habitat for timber. Cutting down the owl’s habitat creates a situation in which the owl cannot feed itself. Is it right for a logger to feed his family? Yes. Is it right for an owl to have the opportunity to feed itself? Yes. What’s right for the owl is wrong for the logger, what is right for the logger is wrong for the owl—hence the dilemma. In the example, the complexity of the interdependencies dissolves, and only the binary remains. The intricacy of the interwoven biotic and abiotic factors present in the ecosystem, and the balance required to ensure its enduring health, are sacrificed for an orderly example.
Sacrificing complexity for order has consequences. Over time, the repeated use of this example, and others like it, have contributed to a false dichotomy positioning active land management and ecosystem health as opposing objectives in the American consciousness. In truth, a chainsaw can be an effective tool for conservation. It would be fairly easy to write this example off as an instance of true science being convoluted by the humanities. However, our desperate need for order runs so deep that behavioral ecologist Jennifer Campbell-Smith suggests that our drive to quantify animal behavior in a “stimulus-and-instinct driven framework” so that data can be used to support peerreviewed science” winds up “denying the role of thinking, plasticity and decision-making in other creatures’ lives.”
In a recent article in High Country News, Dr. Campbell-Smith reflects on a viral video showcasing an interaction between a badger and a coyote. The video features a coyote playfully bowing in front of a badger and then appearing to lead it through a tunnel designed to let wildlife pass safely underneath a highway. For Dr. CampbellSmith, the video highlights a subtlety that is often lost. She reflects that, in her experience, interested members of the public, even many scientists, frequently come to her seeking demonstrable data backed rules of animal behavior. However, there is not a consistent, natural rule that these two species, coyote and badger, get along. Yet these two individuals seem to. In this effort to create order out of chaos, the individuality of these animals is lost.
This moment of cross-species playfulness occurs between two animals that have been shown to both hunt together and hunt each other. In the video, Dr. Campbell-Smith sees “an elegant demonstration of how complex and flexible nature is. How intelligent these two animals are — not simply two animal-robots reacting solely to stimuli. How the body language and ease between them suggests that they know each other as individuals, and that those individuals matter.” At some level, these observations run counter to the anti-anthropomorphism prevalent in the scientific community. It would therefore seem, in reading her reflection, that this conclusion did not arise from reviewing data sheets or pouring through scientific literature, instead it is likely born of intense observation and her capacity to see past our fabricated order.
That is not to say that rigorous science has no place, or that considering ethical binaries has no value. Instead, it is simply to suggest that, as Nobel Prize winning author José Saramago famously stated, perhaps “chaos is order yet undeciphered.” There are limits to our understanding and the complex systems that underlie the natural world stretch those limits in wondrous ways.
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Merck Forest & Farmland Center offers a wide variety of immersive, hands-on learning opportunities for all ages and skill levels. Through self-guided tours, workshops, summer camps, field trips, residential internships, seminars, and certification courses,, learners are able to experience the joyous chaos that is the natural world. A list of upcoming programs can be found here in the Ridgeline as well as on our website.
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Merck Forest’s Annual BioBlitz is almost here! From dawn to dusk on July 24th and 25th, the Merck Forest Conservation Team, Merck staff, and expert guides will be facilitating scientific exploration for community members of all ages, backgrounds, and experience with wildlife. Come for as much or as little time as you would like. We have the tools on site and on hand to support your BioBlitz experience! With the success of BioBlitz 2020 in the face of a pandemic, high energy from new faces on Merck Forest and Farmland Center’s team, and 3200 acres of wildlife to explore, BioBlitz 2021 is shaping up to be the best Merck Forest BioBlitz yet!
What is a BioBlitz?
A BioBlitz is an event that focuses on identifying as many species as possible in a specific area over a relatively short period of time. For Merck Forest, this is anywhere on the property on July 24th and July 25th. Identifying species in a BioBlitz can be done in a variety of formats, but here at Merck Forest, we’ll use iNaturalist, a platform made for anybody to identify wildlife in the form of an observation. Anybody can participate; all ages and experience levels are welcomed!
How to Participate
We choose iNaturalist to document our BioBlitz observations. It’s easy to use, and major biodiversity networks like the Vermont Atlas of Life and the Global Biodiversity Information Facility collects data from iNaturalist, so your observations are seen around the world! Preparing to participate in Merck Forest BioBlitz 2021 is easy!
1. Register for the BioBlitz with Merck Forest! Navigate to its event page by clicking “View & Register for Upcoming Events” on the merckforest.org homepage.
2. Print and fill out a Merck Forest liability waiver which can be found on the BioBliz registration page.
3. Make an account on iNaturalist.org or on the free smartphone app.
4. Join the iNaturalist project by searching Merck Forest BioBlitz 2021 on the platform and clicking “Join”.
5. Take a picture (or a lot of them!) of a wild organism at Merck Forest on July 24th or 25th and upload your picture to iNaturalist!
Exciting Past BioBlitz Observations
Newly Identified Species from BioBlitz 2019 & 2020:
• Merck Forest property: 226
• Bennington Co.: 69
• State of Vermont: 3
Plantae (plants) and Insecta (insects) scored the most observations at BioBlitz 2020: 106 “Research Grade” observations of each! We also logged observations of Aves (birds), Amphibia (frogs, toads, and salamanders), Mammalia (mammals), Fungi, Arachnids (spiders and mites), Reptilia (turtles), and even Mollusca (snails and slugs) and Actinopterygii (fish)! To see some of these observations highlighted with their pictures and information about the species, check out Merck Forest’s BioBlitz 2021 Facebook Event Page, or the Merck Forest BioBlitz 2021 iNaturalist Project Journal for “Observations of the Day” until July 24th.
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These four observations were all first documentations of their species at Merck Forest and in Bennington County, VT in BioBlitz 2019 and 2020!
Blue Dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis)
© Zac Cota - some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Fork-tailed Bush Katydid (Scudderia furcate) © Nathaniel Sharp – some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Hare’s Foot Inkcap (Coprinopsis lagopus) © Nathaniel Sharp – some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Northeastern Pine Sawyer Beetle (Monochamus notatus) © Zac Cota - some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
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Active Forest Management and Birds
by Tim Duclos, MSc.
The Conservation Team has been hard at work this June making continued advancements towards the next 10-year (2022-2031) forest management plan for Merck Forest. Recently, Conservation Manager Tim Duclos and Student Conservation Association Intern Max Miley completed a rigorous assessment of the forest bird community across forest stands throughout the property -- these being groups of trees with outstanding prescriptions for some form of forest management (i.e. harvesting trees) these past 10 years. After many predawn hikes deep into the property, 206 individual assessments (10-minute point counts), and subsequently groggy afternoons and reams of data, we have gathered a true wealth of information about these forests -- here through a proverbial lens that’s a bit departed from the standard cruising prism (an ocular device used to measure volume of trees at a given location); yet worry not, the prism will definitely be put to use later this season when we complete the forest inventory and habitat component of this assessment. With data on both the bird community as well as forest conditions, this information will empower a level of planning and approach that exceeds the standard forest management strategy; work that is gaining interest from our Federal, State and regional conservation entities: US Forest Service, Vermont Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, Vermont Dept. of Forest, Parks and Recreation, Vermont Forest Ecosystem Monitoring Cooperative, Vermont Center for Ecostudies, and others.
But before I go further, let’s discuss a few key elements related to forest management planning; what is a forest management plan, why is forest management important, and how do birds relate?
A forest management plan is effectively a work plan that is not unlike a health and wellness plan that your doctor may prescribe in order to keep you healthy and at your best based on your health history, current condition, and your goals. A forest management plan documents current forest conditions- standard elements being measures of forest health, diversity of forest age and species, tree quality, and various other environmental, esthetic, historical/cultural, and functional elements that together describe the state of affairs in the woods. Moreover, the management plan also captures forest health threats that may affect your goals: big ones being forest pests, pathogens and a changing climate. From here, the work plan component of the document describes the recommendation for treatment (or no treatment) based on professional evaluation of this information and knowledge of the ever-evolving scientific understanding of these natural systems. And this process is ideally adaptive: meaning forest management is an iterative process of assessment, prescription, action, re-evaluation of outcome, and forwards henceforth; forests are dynamic systems, the knowledge of how to manage them are ever evolving, and goals can change.
But you may ask: why manage the forest at all- why not just let it grow? Understandable question. And the answer is both simple and quite complex. An abbreviated answer is that the forests we have here in Vermont are actually quite young and most can benefit from careful science-based curation of condition, given that forests grow and develop on the order of centuries -- a time scale beyond the lifespan of us humans. The forests that surround us, these young forests, are not yet optimized for diversity and health -- as they are still recovering from being almost entirely cut down in the mid-1800’s as well as stressors since. As such, by curating the condition of the forest based on careful, professional, evaluation of current condition and application of modern science, managers are working to return these forests to a condition of greater biodiversity and resilience. And, moreover, along the way, forest management concurrently increases carbon sequestration, procures renewable resources, and stimulates the local and regional economy. In fact, forest management, ideally and most often, pays for itself. Think of it as a reinvestment of dividends into the corpus of an endowment.
Conservation Manager Tim Duclos completes a 10-minute count of birds at a sample station. Photo Credit: Tim Duclos Tim and Max celebrate completing their bird assessments.12
Photo Credit: Max Miley
Now, as for what birds have to do with all of this. Well, birds happen to be excellent indicators of biodiversity and overall forest health -- in the sciences, bird communities are often evaluated alongside forest management- more so than any other group of species, other than trees. This is because there is substantial diversity of birds that occupy our forests and their presence, abundance, and collective diversity tell a rich story about forest age, structure, and health. The trees (from large saw-timber to the smallest regenerating stems) represent key habitat for a variety of birds- and the trees themselves comprise a condition that provide overarching habitat for greater biodiversity that also relate to the birds. Moreover, birds are a group of species that, currently, are largely impacted by various stressors and worth conservation focus, not to mention an inherently charismatic group that are relatable to most people. With all of this in mind, emerging forest management approaches such as Audubon Vermont’s Foresters for the Birds program seeks to educate professionals and non-professionals alike about the strategy and benefits of taking into consideration the bird community and their habitat needs in the forest management planning process. In fact, Merck Forest already hosts one Foresters for the Birds demonstration site -- work completed this last cycle. Preliminary data from re-evaluation of the bird community within this harvest area this June has evidenced the success of the harvest: this stand hosts a diverse group of species -- from common yellowthroat and chestnut-sided warblers, which occupy young, regenerating forests, to ovenbirds and red-eyed vireos, which occupy mature forests; here these birds live in the same forested area in a way that one would not otherwise expect or see. This is ecological silviculture in action.
All told, for me, this planning process represents the spirit of Merck Forest and its foundational commitment to active, adaptive, forest management. This is one element of the work of the conservation team and we hope to advance more such work going into this next 10-year forest management cycle. So, stay tuned for so much more folks!
Onwards and upwards.
Sam Schneski, Windham County Forester and Vice President
MFFC Board of Trustees, stops to appreciate an impressive sawlog-quality sugar maple in the southwestern portion of the property during a preliminary stand tour this past winter; trees like this are a result of the history of active forest management efforts at MFFC. Photo Credit: Tim Duclos
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Partners from VT Dept. of Fish and Wildlife and VT Dept. of Forest, Parks and Recreation meet with Tim Duclos on MFFC property to talk about the forthcoming forest management plan.
An Opportunity for Land, Learning and Recreation
By Liz Ruffa and Rob TerryMerck Forest & Farmland Center’s work has started to strategically extend beyond the boundaries of its 3,200 acre main campus in Rupert. MFFC ecologists are working to help protect both the 42,000-acre intact forest block in which the institution is situated, as well as the block’s connectivity to adjoining high-value habitats such as the Hudson Highlands and Central Green Mountains. MFFC agricultural specialists are collaborating with local producers on a variety of projects designed to connect visitors and regional residents with the local foodshed. Recently, recognizing a deep need in our community to help bridge the rapidly expanding gap between regional elementary aged youth and the natural world, MFFC, with support from the Vermont Land Trust, acquired a 144-acre satellite campus adjacent to Mettawee Community School (MCS), the public Title-1 K-6 school serving Rupert in Bennington County and Pawlet in Rutland County. MCS has around 200 students; 53.4% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch.
The acquisition of this satellite campus has fostered a working partnership between MFFC and Mettawee Community School aimed at delivering working lands and ecology-related programming to MCS students through direct instruction and teacher workshops. In addition to educational outcomes, the project offers several positive conservation outcomes, including ensuring that no hazardous chemicals are used on the agricultural fields adjoining the school and that the richly diverse 144 acre lot featuring hemlock, mixed hardwood, and dry oak forests as well as shrubland, brushland, wetland and grassland habitat will be protected. Farm-related social enterprise work, regional/ national teacher professional development and the development of a community recreational asset are long term goals.
MFFC’s Education team has worked closely with MCS to develop a “satellite campus” that offers educational, socio-emotional and recreational experiences and benefits for students. In time, the property will become accessible to other schools in the Bennington-Rutland Supervisory Union (6 schools, 1200 students). In addition to leading groups and classes on site, MFFC offers ongoing professional development and technical assistance to MCS faculty and staff, so that they can use the campus for classwork, sports and project-based learning. The 144 acres offer a host of different uses - academic, physical and social - and it has been exciting and gratifying to re-purpose the property for multiple uses and benefits.
MFFC has plans to gradually make on-site improvements, build richer programmatic capacity and increase options for public recreational use. Our near term goal is to design and construct a public use adaptive trail loop.
What?
MFFC educators and MCS staff are thrilled to use the land “as is” - there are already myriad fields, forests and former logging roads available with lots of room to explore.
MFFC sees future success for the property by encouraging walking, hiking, biking, snowshoeing, nordic and back-country skiing activities as well as providing opportunities for academic, research and project-related use by students and faculty.
Engaging students (and the school community at large) in the trail design and construction process will offer an instructional opportunity that will deliver high quality project-based learning and spur workforce interest in this field and sector.
How?
MFFC would like to work with Sustainable Trail Works out of Poultney (Slate Valley Trails) on this project, thereby providing an incredible opportunity to engage students in creative planning and actual trail construction process. Adding a dedicated Americorps intern to MFFC staff will help steward this and other on-property projects and greatly enhance the project’s growth.
Why?
In addition to being a valuable site enhancement for MCS students, this trail loop will also offer great public benefit to the greater Pawlet community.
To date, MFFC has been able to purchase the property, pay for all transaction fees and has started an Innovation Fund to financially support MCS student designed projects. Obtaining funding for trail work and Americorps/Vista engagement is currently underway.
Contact Liz Ruffa (liz@merckforest.org) or Rob Terry (rob@merckforest.org) if you’d like more information about this project
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Mettawee Community School Pawlet - Cleveland II Pawlet - Farmer/Burnett Pawlet - Hulett ? 30 ROUTE153 I Property: Location: 8 Bailey Avenue Montpelier, VT 05602 Orthophoto Map Vermont Land Trust Mettawee Campus Pawlet 0 100 200 300 400 50 Meters 0 410 820 1,230 1,640 205 Feet
144 acres 15
Scale:1:6,360
Milestones – Seventy Years at MFFC
by Marybeth LeuIn 2000, a timeline of significant milestones in MFFC’s first fifty years of continuous operation was published in the summer issue of the Ridgeline newsletter. Individual entries document such important events as the continued acquisition of land, construction of new facilities, development of educational programs and partnerships, and the re-alignment of staff positions to provide progressive and innovative responses to the challenges of managing the farm and forest.
In the twenty years since this 2000 timeline was published, milestones have continued to mark the progress of this organization. What might be most remarkable about this extended timeline is not awards won or production thresholds achieved, but the constancy, over time, of our guiding land ethic. It has been often stated - but nowhere more simply or with more heartfelt conviction than by longtime volunteer/staffer/ Advisor/Trustee, Margaret Mertz - in a 2001 interview: “I don’t think there could be a more important cause for the world than to have sustainable management of farm and forest in the world. I mean, I don’t see this as a local issue. It’s a worldwide issue.”
This sentiment has been a quiet drumbeat, a metronome by which we continue to measure our progress. We are poised to complete a century in the service of preserving and conserving land as well as managing and stewarding it and educating our 15,000 annual visitors about the work we do and why we do it.
Land Management Milestones
1940 George Merck purchases land in Rupert, Vermont, as a family getaway
1950 Mr. Merck donates 2600 acres to create the Vermont Forest & Farmland Foundation
1951 Dedication of Carl A Schenck Tree Farm
1952 Distinguished Farmer Award established
1957 Hosted statewide land-use conference
1980 151,000 board feet of lumber harvested & sold; improvements to the sugarbush
1997 310 acres of adjoining forest donated in memory of George Merck
1997 New Trail cut, others planned, between Old Town Rd and the McCormick Trail designed to reduce “traffic conflicts” on Old Town Road
1998 310-Acre Donation increases MFFC footprint to 3130 acres. Donation is the culmination of 3-year discussion between NE Forestry Foundation, Trust of Public Lands & MFFC
2000 20-acre donation from Dorothy Fetteroff in memory of her husband increases footprint to 3150 acres
2000 Cutting-edge sap pipeline constructed; designated Certified Organic syrup producer
2004 Charles Cogbill’s publication”Land Use at MFFC, 1761 to Present” documents the land use history of the properties which eventually comprised MFFC.
2012 Re-siting the sugarbush and installation of a new evaporator
2012 Grant-funded fences erected to manage pasturelands and institute rotational grazing
2013 Controlled burn of forest east of Lookout Road is conducted in order to regenerate the area for red oaks
2015 Trustee committee explores placing a conservation easement on MFFC property
2016 A permanent Conservation Easement, held by the Vermont Land Trust, is established to protect the natural resources of the property
2019 Collaboration with UVM’s Rubenstein School of Environment & Natural Resources to educate private landowners about the value of “landscape level” management plans for their properties
2020 With support from the Vermont Land Trust, MFFC purchased 144-acre parcel adjacent to the Mettowee Community School, for development of outdoor environmental programs
Educational Program Milestones
1 975 Summer Camps established
1976 Winter Study program initiated: Rustic living & selfsufficiency taught to college students
1976 New Education Coordinator develops 3-season programs for 25 local schools; participation of +/-2500 students from area schools
1976 8th consecutive year of SCA/MFFC joint programs for high school students; 3rd consecutive year for sleepover camps for 8- to 12-year olds; 1st year “nomad” camping experience for 12-15 year olds
1987 3-1/2 week Winter Program for college students; Spring school groups for over 600 children; Apprentices; Summer Camps for 120 children
1997 30th anniversary of SCA/MFFC partnership: rich, varied experiences are afforded to young people as they live on and work the land
2013 Professional education in place-based Environmental Science is offered to local teachers
2015 New collaborative program with area schools is initiated with focus on NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) curricula
2016 A year-long series of workshops on lumber-processing and timber-framing construction was conducted, in prelude to the construction of a cabin replicating Henry David Thoreau’s tiny house at Walden Pond (Concord, Massachusetts)
2017 Replica Thoreau cabin is completed and dedicated on the bicentennial anniversary of HD Thoreau’s birth
2020 Major disruptions to programming occur as the COVID-19 virus closes down all social venues. The property remains open to the public, but events and programs pivot to online offerings
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Conservation Ethic Milestones
1952 First participation in Soil Bank & ACP program
1954 Deer browse research initiated
1971 Battenkill Watershed Study established
1978 Intern wildlife studies conducted
1987 Widespread systemic damage to sugar maples in the sugarbush (attributed to acid rain) is discovered; the decision is made to reduce the number of taps installed in order to reduce stress on the sugarbush
1988 Decision to cancel sugaring due to sugar maples’ decline
1995 General Natural History inventory commences phase one with 40 community study-plots as a baseline
1997 MFFC celebrates 30-year partnership with SCA (Student Conservation Association)
1997 The Forest Stewardship Program (partnership between Vt Dept of Forests, Parks & Recreation, USDA Forest Service) awards MFFC the Forest Stewardship Award
1999 SmartWood Certification awarded MFFC by Rainforest Alliance in recognition of forestry practices that maintain the vitality & functionality of ecosystems
1999 In a 15-minute thunderstorm on July 6th, 45 acres of forest were flattened
2000 New Mission Statement & Strategic Objectives identified
2001 First-in-the-nation SmartWood Certification awarded by Rainforest Alliance for Maple Syrup operations
2002 Dual Certification: Green-Certified by the Forest Steward’s Council and Certified Organic by NOFA-VT
2002 MFFC selected Vermont Tree Farm of the Year by Vermont Woodlands Association
2003 Construction on new sugarhouse, with timber harvested at MFFC, is started
2003 “Shelterwood Timber Harvest” – a experimental staged harvest -- is undertaken
2011 35 chestnut tree seeds are planted in hopes of determining site tolerance of these plants to high elevation (2000’ plus) conditions
2012 Preparations begin for the establishment of a large experimental chestnut orchard in partnership with the Vermont Chapter of the American Chestnut Foundation.
2013 NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) partners with MFFC on 4 water-quality projects to reduce erosion & nutrient-loading in the watershed
2013 Forester for the Birds project is initiated, in partnership with Audubon-Vermont and Vermont Dept of Forests, Parks & Recreation. The goal is to develop & demonstrate forest management that integrates timber and songbird habitat
2013 First-ever BioBlitz takes place to catalog living species at MFFC
2013 Solar panels installed at the lodge to provide electricity
2014 Partnership between MFFC and Vermont Center for Ecostudies to document biodiversity; Using iNaturalist application for May 2013 Bioblitz. 2016 United Nations Group of 77 – members from developing nations with an interest in sustainable management of farm & forest resources – visited MFFC for presentations by Ethan Crumley (Forester) and Jonathan Kilpatrick (Farm Manager)
2019 Citizen scientists catalog MFFC’s flora & fauna at the summer BioBlitz
2019 State House to Farm House event hosted at MFFC connected legislators with area farmers and food producers
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Sand County Almanac
A Recommended Read by Chris Hubbard
“A land ethic is the existence of an ecological conscience, and this in turn reflects a conviction of individual responsibility for the health of our land. Health is the capacity of the land for self-renewal. Conservation is our effort to understand and preserve this capacity.”
—Aldo Leopold, A Sand County AlmanacQuoted on the triptych hanging in the MFFC Visitor Center
A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There, is a book I had never really picked up. Yes, I’d read an essay here, an essay there, but I’d never sat down to read the entire book, like I tend to do with so many others. That changed in the past few weeks, when I decided to delve into the book, cover to cover.
Leopold took me through a month-by-month journey over a year of changes in ecology near his farm in Wisconsin, as well as travels through different parts of the country and world. The details Leopold described almost 75 years ago could be observed, both at home and here at Merck, in the few weeks I spent reading his essays. A large tree, felled by the wind and bucked up, as the chainsaw sliced back through time and with growth rings now exposed, now allows for foot traffic along the Farm Trail (February). My early morning risings in the dark and stillness are broken first by one, then a chorus of bird song (July). Many of Leopold’s natural observations are, fortunately, still observable today, if one takes the time to look and listen. I was captivated, as I delved deeper into the book.
“A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.” (p. 264). So wrote Leopold on land ethics. I found Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac and the land ethic he put forth to continue to be as relevant today as when it was written, as we face an ever-growing host of serious environmental problems: invasive species, forest defragmentation, the loss of wildlife habitat and the extinction of species, pollution, and climate change, to name a just few. Just as Leopold writes about some of the ecological challenges that were being faced, he also touches on the thinking of today, as efforts to restore the land and preserve our wildlands continue, as we look to the environment as a whole, from the microscopic organisms that live in the soil to the apex predators that are so rarely seen.
I find our mission of “inspiring curiosity, love, and responsibility toward natural and working lands” reflected in Leopold’s work. I invite you to pick up a copy of A Sand County Almanac for the first time, if you haven’t read it yet, or as a reread, if you have. It’s a timeless classic that’s well worth the read.
A Sand County Almanac and Sketches Here and There, by Aldo Leopold (1949), Oxford University Press.
Natural Communities of Merck Forest
A Guide to the Guide
Merck Forest and Farmland Center
Wednesday, August 4, 2021, 1:00-5:00 pm
Sponsored by:
Vermont Land Trust, Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, The Nature Conservancy, and Merck Forest and Farmland Center
Join Liz Thompson, Eric Sorenson, and Bob Zaino, the three authors of Wetland, Woodland, Wildland: A Guide to the Natural Communities of Vermont to celebrate the publication of the second edition of the book with an exploration of Merck’s special natural communities, including Dry Chestnut Oak Forest and Rich Northern Hardwood Forest. The forests here are fascinating and we will learn about the trees, shrubs, wildflowers of the forest floor, and forest structure, and explore how different soils support different plants and animals.
This will be a moderate hike over variable terrain. Please register at vlt.org/events. Limit 25 participants.
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Wood Chips/Mushrooms/Weather = Regenerative/Rich/Healthy Soil
By Sue Van Hook
When life is mushrooming as it is for me, a thirty year member of MFFC, I look for opportunities to incorporate mycelium wherever possible into working landscapes. This spring I reached out to Ecovative Design, the mushroom packaging company where I was the mycologist for nine years (and that MFFC has used for packaging to to ship its maple syrup), to ask if I could use their spent oyster mushroom substrate in a pilot project to create healthy soil adjacent to Merck Forest’s parking lot garden.
The pilot project at MFFC is testing a myco-restoration protocol developed by mushroom guru, Paul Stamets, for future reclamation of unused roadbeds and trails. In a carefully timed effort between Ecovative and MFFC, I drove the farm’s pickup truck to Green Island, NY on June 1st to collect the spent substrate off the conveyor belt at Ecovative’s AtLast
clearing overhanging branches from the forest roads and grinding them into fresh wood chips.
The following day, MFFC staff made a wood chip sandwich -- layering wood chips, spent mushroom substrate, and more wood chips. The rains did bless the installation with a regular periodicity to soak the wood chips, allowing the mycelium to colonize them. But enough rain already! In the past week, daily showers have brought forth the oyster mushrooms themselves. These fruiting bodies will deposit their spores adding more points of inoculation to the wood chips and ensuring a steady conversion of wood chips to microbially rich soil. A mushroom’s life cycle is vital and benevolent.
Save The Date
Merck Forest will be holding a Project Learning Tree training on Saturday, October 2nd. Project Learning Tree is an award-winning environmental education program designed for teachers and other educators, parents, and community leaders working with youth from preschool through grade 12. The program features activities and resources to engage children in learning about the environment through the lens of trees and forests. Details to be announced. If interested, contact Chris at christine@merckforest.org.
mushroom bacon production facility. I delivered it to Dylan Durkee, MFFC’s farm manager, and intern Tyler Hughes who had spent the day
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Sweet & Sour Blueberry Sauce
with Pork Chops
Directions:
Rub pork chops with salt, pepper, and olive oil and let sit at room temperature for an hour, or in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
Prepare the sauce: dice red onion and cook on medium heat with olive oil for about 5 minutes. Add white wine, vinegar, spices, and a pinch of salt, and let simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated.
Lamb Brine & Grill
From our friends at Northshire Grown: Direct
Ingredients:
Boneless Lamb Roast
Buttermilk
Lemon Juice & Rind
Mint
Rosemary
Directions:
Olive Oil
Shallots
Garlic Ginger
Ingredients:
1 medium red onion, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 ½ cup white wine
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar or rice vinegar
1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 ½ teaspoons dried ground sumac
1 ½ cups blueberries
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 bay leaf
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
Salt & pepper to taste
4-6 pork chops
Salt & pepper for seasoning
Olive oil
Add blueberries, butter, and maple syrup and cook until the berries are soft and broken down a bit (about 5 minutes). Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Lay pork chops in a roasting pan or dutch oven lined with aluminum foil, and spoon the blueberry sauce over them. Roast uncovered for about 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
U-pick raspberries and blueberries, plus pasture-raised pork and lamb products (frozen) are available at MFFC - check-in at the Visitor Center. Thanks to Cara for sourcing these recipes.
Raspberry Lemonade Almond Bars
Ingredients:
Crust:
¼ cup melted unsalted butter
or coconut oil
¼ cup maple syrup
¼ teaspoon almond extract
1 ½ cups almond flour
Filling:
1 pint raspberries
2 large eggs
½ cup maple syrup
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
⅛ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons almond flour
Powdered sugar(for dusting)
Directions:
Defrost meat. Prepare a brine of buttermilk, lemon juice and rind, mint, rosemary,olive oil, finely shopped shallots, garlic and fresh ginger. Marinate meat in brine for up to two days. Grill drained roast and enjoy!
If you want a special summer dressing for your salads and crudites, blend 3 parts buttermilk, 1 part olive oil, 0.5 part mayo, herbs, salt and pepper; blend well and enjoy. Will keep in fridge for a week.
1. Make the crust: mix almond flour with melted butter or oil, maple syrup, and almond extract. Line an 8x8 inch baking pan with parchment. Press crust into an even layer in the bottom of the pan and chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit while the crust is chilling, then bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool, but keep the oven on.
3. While the crust is baking, purée raspberries in a blender until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl.
4. Whisk eggs, maple syrup, and lemon juice in another medium bowl. Whisk in salt and 1/4 cup raspberry purée until smooth, then whisk in flour until combined. (Reserve remaining raspberry purée for other uses.) Pour filling into the crust and bake until filling is set and slightly golden at the edges, about 20 minutes more.
5. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool completely. Loosen edges with a butter knife, then use parchment paper overhang to remove the bar from the pan. Place the bar on parchment on a cutting board and cut into 16 bars. Dust with powdered sugar if desired. Keep bars refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Image: Elise Bauer20
Events and Programs for Children, Adults and Families
Please arrive 15 minutes prior to the start of your program. Preregistration is required for all programs. To sign up for events and workshops, go to merckforest.org/events/ or call 802-394-7836.
MFFC requests that if visitors and event attendees are not fully vaccinated for Covid-19, they wear masks and stay socially distanced from others.
MERCK FOREST BIOBLITZ 2021
July 24 - July 25, Dawn to Dusk
Join fellow naturalists of all experience levels at Merck Forest & Farmland Center for two days of exploration of everything natural across any of 3167 acres of forests, fields, and waters. From experts to novices, all curious minds are welcome. The goal of this BioBlitz is to document as much natural life as possible on Merck Forest property over the weekend — this year we hope to break the 1000 species mark for the Merck Forest property! Participation is as easy as taking a photo and recording date, time, and location, and uploading to iNaturalist.org via the app or web. This will be fun, easy, safe, and may be done at your own pace. To participate, please first log into the iNaturalist website and visit the Merck Forest BioBlitz 2021 Project page and click ‘join’.
THURSDAY MEET & FEED
Thursday afternoons until August 12, 2pm to 4pm
On Thursday afternoons, under the bright blue sky of Vermont, you and your children can take part in an ages-old tradition: daily chores on our hillside farm. Our farm staff will lead your family around the farm as you feed the chickens and collect eggs from the nest boxes, and feed & water the sheep, horses and pigs. You might weed the children’s garden, or pick berries. Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Fee: $5 per person.
VOLUNTEER WORK PARTY
July 31, August 28, September 25, October 30, 10:00 am to 3:00 pm
From mulching raspberries to maintaining trails, volunteers work side-by-side MFFC staff in stewarding the land. Come give a hand, and learn while you work! Free.
SECOND SATURDAY HIKE
August 14, September 11, October 9, November 13, December 11, 2pm to 4pm
Enjoy a guided hike with a MFFC staff member who will discuss the ecology, history, farming culture and forestry of the area. Wear proper hiking footgear for our rugged trails, and bring water, snacks and bug spray. Fee: $5 per person.
SUNDAY MEET & FEED
Sunday afternoons until October 10, 3pm to 4:30pm
Join Merck staff on Sunday afternoons as they go about afternoon chores feeding our animals. Get to know our sheep, horses, chickens, and pigs during our daily routine. Fee: $5 per person.
MUSHROOM HUNT FOR CHILDREN
August 28 @ 10:00 am - 11:30 am
A walk and search for families with kids. Families should bring baskets to gather mushrooms in. Fee: $10 per person.
MUSHROOM ID WORKSHOP (TEENS/ADULTS)
August 28, 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm
An adult workshop on mushroom identification. Mycologist Sue VanHook will bring mushrooms in to be identified, but participants are invited to forage and bring in their own samples as well. Fee: $10 per person.
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Advancement Notes
It is so nice to be back in action! The Visitor Center is now open Thursdays–Mondays, summer camp is in full swing and the parking lot is once again filled with lots of different license plates. MFFC’s cohort of summer interns and apprentices are a wonderful, welcome addition to the team approach we take as a staff. Several farm-focused and land management projects are in planning and implementation mode and the return of school groups to the farm and forest in September is something we are all looking forward to.
Merck Forest’s 3,200 acres were used and enjoyed by many during the Pandemic - all who chose to spend time outside were respectful of the property and of fellow visitors. We consistently posted guidelines that were regularly updated to sync with VT state and national CDC recommendations. Though the staff used office space time sparingly and strategically, it was always a welcome distraction when there to witness hikers, runners, skiers and families spend time outside and together, though distanced. Things have been quiet up on the mountain during the past year, but there has been a stark beauty in that quiet.
Thank you all for allowing Merck Forest to remain open, wellcared for and accessible to all during a dark and challenging time. Because of your support, MFFC members and donors, we have been able to offer a consistent connection to the natural world, real and uncurated, to everyone, all the time. Memberships and donations continue to grow - please share your commitment to our people, place, and purpose with others! We truly value your partnership. Help us grow our network and member base by sharing your appreciation for what we dohelp us grow the pie! We are always better, together.
A few things to look out for:
7/19 Tim Duclos, Max Miley and Nathaniel Sharp from VT Center for Ecostudies will be featured on WEQX’s Sunday Brunch interview show on Sunday, July 18. Tune in live or online at 11am EST at 102.7 FM or WEQX.com. They will be talking about the upcoming BioBlitz!
Support local farmers and our local food shed by ordering a box or two from Northshire Grown: Direct’s direct to consumer market. Upcoming market dates are Wednesday July 28 and Wednesday August 4. Information and order forms available when you sign up at www.northshiregrown.com.
Make sure to keep your annual membership current. You may see an email from us if it has or is about to lapse.
Planning is underway to celebrate our local food shed this fall on the farm! Details to follow soon!
Liz Ruffa, Director, Institutional Advancement
Membership Matters!
Renew your own membership; gift one to a friend or family member and encourage others to join.
Regular annual membership is $50; Anniversary membership is $70 and includes one of these Storey Publishing titles. Members receive discounts on cabin rentals, items in the Visitor Center and special events.
Visit www.merckforest.org/get-involved/ memberships/ for more information.
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MFFC dedicates this issue of the Ridgeline to Liz Putnam
(aka Elizabeth Cushman Titus Putnam), the Founding President of the Student Conservation Association, the nation’s first and largest youth conservation service organization.
Liz lives in Shaftsbury, Vermont, and Merck Forest was honored to host her as keynote speaker at the 70th MFFC Annual Meeting in June at the Frank Hatch Sap House. Merck Forest is endlessly gratified for her friendship and guidance over the years.
Liz’s visionary leadership and tireless advocacy for youth opportunity, community service, and conservation stewardship helped to shape Merck Forest’s apprenticeship and service learning programs. She organized two female crews, the first in the nation, in 1972 - one at Mount Rainier in the Pacific Northwest and one at MFFC, blazing the trail of leading young women into land conservation. Here is the crew photographed with their leaders at Clarks Clearing.
In her senior thesis at Vassar College in 1955, Liz conceived of a modern day version of the 1930’s Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). To address a growing crisis in our national parks, Liz proposed matching student volunteers with conservation projects to benefit both students and the parks. With the help of family, friends and mentors, Liz brought her idea to fulfillment in 1957 when the first Student Conservation Association volunteers – 53 high school, college and graduate students – served in Grand Teton and Olympic National Parks.
Today, SCA (www.theSCA.org) is the national leader in youth service and stewardship. SCA’s mission is to build the next generation of conservation leaders and inspire lifelong stewardship of the environment and communities by engaging young people in hands-on service to the land. Every year, thousands of teens and young adults from every walk of life serve to protect our national parks, forests, seashores, historic treasures, and urban communities. To date, nearly 100,000 young adults from around the U.S. and 30 other countries have served in SCA, and more than 70% continue to work, study and volunteer in the conservation field. SCA is also recognized as a pioneer in leveraging outdoor service experiences to foster participants’ continuous growth and optimal advancement.
Still active as SCA’s premier ambassador and honorary director, Liz has received numerous awards for her work. In 2010, she became the first conservationist to earn the Presidential Citizens Medal, bestowed at the White House by President Barack Obama. Liz has also received the U.S. President’s Volunteer Action Award, the U.S. Department of Interior’s Conservation Achievement Award, as well as the Secretary of the Interior’s Commendation, The Wilderness Society’s Robert Marshall Award, the Garden Club of America’s Margaret Douglas Medal, Rachel Carson Awards from both the National Audubon Society and Chatham University, and honorary doctorates from the University of Vermont, the State University of New York School of Environmental Science and Forestry and the College of Wooster (OH). Liz has also received the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Society of Women Geographers and The Corps Network Legacy Achievement Award.
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802-394-7836
3270 Rte. 315, P.O. Box 86 Rupert, VT 05768
Merck Forest & Farmland Center is on a mission to inspire curiosity, love and responsibility for natural and working lands
PRESORTED STD US POSTAGE PAID MANCHESTER, VT 05254 PERMIT No. 3
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